BOSTON, Mass. – William & Mary senior
Nathan Knight was one of 30 players named to the 2019-20 Lute Olson Award mid-season Watch List, CollegeInsider.com released on Tuesday. The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I player.
Knight is enjoying a strong senior campaign, leading the Tribe to an 11-5 overall record and a perfect 3-0 mark in Colonial Athletic Association play. The 6-10 center leads the country in double-doubles with 12, averaging 20.1 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. He ranks 24th nationally in rebounding and 26th in scoring. Knight earned his league-leading third CAA Player of the Week honor on Monday and tied the W&M school record, held by former All-American Marcus Thornton '15, of six.
The number of major award watch lists continues to grow for the Tribe senior. He was selected to the Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association on Dec. 6. Earlier this season, he was named to the watch list for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year award after being a finalist for the honor last season. During the preseason, Knight garnered a spot on the watch lists for both the Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award and the Lou Henson Mid-Major Player of the Year Award, presented by CollegeInsider.com.
CollegeInsider.com's national player of the year award is named in honor of Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson, who won 776 games in 34 seasons, 24 of which were spent at the University of Arizona. During that stretch, he led the Wildcats to 11 Pac-10 Conference titles, 23 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, four Final Four appearances and a National Championship in 1997.
Olson is one of just 25 head coaches in NCAA history to win 700 or more games (all divisions) and ranks ninth on the Division I career victories list. He finished with a winning percentage of .731 and is the all-time winningest coach in Arizona history with 587-190 record (.755). He was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year seven times. Olson also guided Arizona to 20 consecutive 20-win seasons, and is one of only three coaches in NCAA history to record 29 or more 20-win seasons.
The 2019-20 Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award will be announced in April 2020 in Atlanta, Ga., site of the men's Division I NCAA Basketball Championship.
Knight and the Tribe return home to welcome UNCW on Thursday, Jan. 9 at 7 p.m. The game will be the
program's annual Shoeless Showdown, teaming with C&F Bank and Chick-fil-A to raise awareness for children and adults in the area in need of shoes. Fans who donate a pair of new shoes will receive FREE admission to Thursday's game, a coupon for a FREE Chick-fil-A sandwich, $10 coupon toward a new C & F Bank checking account and 2 FREE tickets to an upcoming Tribe game (on Jan. 25 vs. Towson or Feb. 13 vs. Drexel). Donations will be made to Williamsburg FISH, Inc, and are also accepted at any C&F Bank in the Williamsburg area.
W&M closes out the weekend with Charleston in Kaplan Arena on Saturday at 2 p.m.
